The Paths We Take
by Ged Barrie
Summary: *OotP spoilers* *Repost* Harry continues to be stubborn and shoulder all responsibility so Dumbledore sends Harry off to be trained so he can be ready for the final battle H/G R/Hr *Fully summary inside*
1. Nightmares

**The Paths We Take**

_By Ged_

Disclaimer: I know most of you aren't going to read this anyway so I'll make it brief; I do not own Harry Potter or any of its astounding characters.  They and everything else in the HP universe are owned by J. K. Rowling.  Just about everything in existence is copyrighted these days so really nothing here is mine.

Full Summary: Harry refuses to believe that the results of the previous two years are not his fault, and despite his friends' best efforts he continues to shoulder all responsibility.  Even worse is the discovery of the prophecy in his fifth year, which does nothing to help matters.  Dumbledore understands the situation at hand, and decides that if Harry must face the Dark Lord Voldemort in the end, then he had best be prepared.  Harry goes for training over the summer, and things go from there.  Harry/Ginny with light Ron/Hermione.

A/N: This is my first official fanfic.  Let me know what you think.  Constructive criticisms are welcome, but flamers had best turn back now.

***************************************************************************

Chapter 1: Nightmares

_            "We'll take it together"_

_            "But Harry, you know what is going to happen.  You-know-who will kill me."  Cedric looked back at Harry and saw the look in his eyes.  He became scared, unable to respond._

_  
            "Good; I wanted to see you to die.  I hate you; it seemed that every time I wanted to do something you were there to beat me at it.  You beat me at quiddich.  Then you dared to make a move on the girl I like and got to her first.  You deserve everything you get."  Harry's voice held a strange tone to it, a steely calm with an undertone of pure hatred.  And with that..._

_            "IMPERIO!"  Suddenly, Cedric's eyes went blank, a clear reflection of what happened to his mind.  "You will do as I say.  Now, take the cup with me!"  Without a word, Cedric obeyed and grabbed the tri-wizard tournament cup with Harry._

_***_

_            "Kill the spare."  A flash of green light followed by a muffled scream broke the silence of the once-peaceful graveyard.  As the glow faded, Harry could see Cedric lying spread-eagled on the ground, his eyes blank once more.  This time it was not the effect of the imperius curse, but something else entirely.  There was no avoiding it, Cedric Diggory had been murdered._

_***_

_            "Expeilliarmus!"_

_            "Avada Kedavra!"  The beams of red and green met in midair and formed a strand of gold-colored magic.  Harry focused with all of his might, trying to force his spell upon his opponent Lord Voldemort.  Soon, ghostly images began to appear from Voldemort's wand, in the forms of his friends and family.  Cedric was there, telling all the other shadowy forms about how Harry caused his death.  More and more people began to appear.  Sirius and Remus blamed him for the loss of their best friend; James blamed him for the death of his wife; Lily blamed him for the death of her husband.  It was getting to be too much to handle.  Everywhere Harry looked, people were yelling at him for killing their loved ones.  It was all his fault..._

_            There was a flash and a swirl of color, and he was back in the Department of Mysteries, flying again towards that simple black door at the end of the hallway.  Instead of entering the same room as before, he turned to the left and went into a different room, this one with an ancient-looking archway on a simple dais in the center.  The black veil that Harry remembered so well still fluttered from some unknown force, and whispers could be heard from the behind it.  From the center emerged none other than Sirius Black, Harry Potter's convicted "murderer" of a godfather._

_            "You killed me Potter.  You let me die"_

_            "But there was nothing I could have done!"_

_            "All you had to do was reach out and grab me.  It would have been nothing.  Was I that bad of a godfather to you Harry?  Did I deserve to die?  You think I did don't you.  It's all your fault."_

Harry Potter awoke with a start and a scream that echoed from one end of Privet Drive to another.  He had just come home from his fifth year of wizard training at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and boy was it one to remember.  The resurrection of the Dark Lord Voldemort plagued Harry's mind constantly, and he had himself convinced that it was all his fault.  He was sure that millions of lives would end because he was too blind to see the plan that was forming behind his back the whole time.  Then in his fifth year he discovered the prophecy stating that either he would die or kill Lord Voldemort.  Sirius was dead, Cedric was dead, and there would be so many more to come.  Harry couldn't take it anymore and let his head drop in his hands and cried himself back to sleep.

***************************************************************************

A/N:  Well what do you all think for an opening chapter?  I promise this will start moving faster once I get around to it.  I'll have longer chapters too.  Finals are finally over and I just got back from vacation so I should have about a chapter every so often.  Reviews, especially constructive criticisms, are most welcome; seeing as how this is my first attempt at fan fiction.  Also this is a repost of a story I had originally done as a fifth year fic, but when I realized that nobody was going to read it now that OotP is out, I made it a sixth year.  Thankfully the idea I had can be carried over quite nicely, and the discovery of that prophecy only makes things easier for me.


	2. Correspondence

**The Paths We Take**

_By Ged_

Disclaimer: I know most of you aren't going to read this anyway so I'll make it brief; I do not own Harry Potter or any of its astounding characters.  They and everything else in the HP universe are owned by J. K. Rowling.  Just about everything in existence is copyrighted these days so really nothing here is mine.

A/N: This is my first official fanfic.  Let me know what you think.  Constructive criticisms are welcome, but flamers had best turn back now.

***************************************************************************

Chapter 2: Correspondence

Another cold and lonely night was crawling by at number 4 Privet Drive as Harry lay awake in his bed.  Time no longer had meaning for him; every passing minute felt like an eternity as his dreams, while previously nothing to smile about, paled in comparison to the nightmarish images he'd been subjected to for the last few days.  Realizing that sleep was miles away, Harry got up and walked over to the makeshift desk in the corner, on which rested a half-finished letter to Ron.

Suddenly, Harry heard faint tapping on his window.  Gazing over to the window, he saw the familiar face of Pig and two other unknown owls, one a bright tawny color and the other was a snowy owl similar to Hedwig.  The two owls landed on Harry's desk, and waited patiently as Harry untethered the letters attached to their legs, and the small package carried by the unknown snowy owl.  With an appreciative hoot, each owl flew out of the room as Pig constantly twitted and flew around the room, giving Harry's head an occasional peck, happy he completed his mission.  After a few minutes laughing at its antics, Harry snatched Pig from the air.  As he continued fluttering about in his hands, Harry removed the letter from Pig's leg, and then tossed him out the window.  Unfolding the letter, he began reading:

_Hey, Harry!  I've got some bad news for you...Dumbledore says that he won't allow you to stay at the Burrow this summer...I dunno why, Mum's been pelting him with owls for ages and he still wouldn't say a word.  I reckon he wants to keep you safe after what happened over the past two terms, though I can't think of any place safer than the Burrow right about now.  Dad says Dumbledore has his reasons, and I think he knows more than he's letting on.  Ginny and I stopped down at Fred and George's new store the other day.  You wouldn't believe all the joke stuff they managed to create.  You have no idea what you set into motion the day you gave them that money.  We've been hearing more explosions than usual from their room, and their jokes are springing up all over the house.  From the rate at which they're making their jokes, you'd think that someone is helping them.  There is no way that two kids can turn out as much as they did in such a short amount of time.  Did you hear from Hermione about going to Bulgaria to see that git, Vicky?  I asked her about it like a thousand times and she just stopped answering.  I swear, the nerve of her!  Anyway I gotta run.  I just heard another explosion from the kitchen, and Mum's taking her rage out on anyone in the house!_

_Ron_

After finishing with Ron's letter, Harry turned to the brightly-colored tawny owl's letter and right from reading the handwriting on the envelope he knew it was from Hermione Granger, one of Harry's first friends upon his arrival to Hogwarts.  Nobody cared enough about their handwriting to make it that neat except Hermione.  He tore open the envelope and read

_Dear Harry,_

_            I'm sure that Ron has owled you by now, asking for information about me and Viktor.  I can assure you that there is nothing between us, but don't tell Ron.  I want to make him suffer a little first.  Anyway, how has your summer been going with the Dursleys?  I saw some well-known wizards and witches talking to them about something when we got off the train.  I hope it's nothing serious.  So what do you think of my new owl, Persephone?  She was a birthday gift from my parents.  She's absolutely gorgeous!  I'm really really scared about getting my OWL results; I don't know how I did.  I think I did rather well, except in..._

Harry continued to read Hermione's letter, going over how she thought she did on each aspect of the exams.  Finally, after 3 pages, Harry came to the end.

_            I'm going to be going over to the Burrow at the end of the month, so if you want to keep in touch you can owl me there.  (I'm going for Ginny, not that prat Ron!)_

_            Love from,_

_            Hermione_

Harry allowed himself a chuckle at the end of her letter.  When would those two ever realize how perfect they were for each other?  Harry was certainly no expert in the field of romance; his "date" (if you could call it that) with Cho Chang the year before was not what you would call a very romantic experience.  If he recalled correctly, it ended with her in tears and him in a very bad mood.  However even he could see how obviously smitten his two friends were.  Harry finally turned to the letter delivered by the mysterious snowy owl.  He didn't recognize the handwriting, so he very carefully opened it and started reading

_Harry,_

_It's me, Ginny.  I hope you'll actually read this and not just toss it out because you don't recognize the owl and are paranoid about dark wizards sending you portkeys, like back during the third task.  I just wanted to let you know that I have been through very similar things, and if you ever want to talk about it, my faithful owl Bill would be more than happy to help exchange correspondence.  My brother Bill bought him for me as a birthday present but couldn't get him to me until I got home so I decided to name the owl after him.  Anyway, it's so boring around here.  Ron is off stewing about Hermione every day and Fred and George are keeping to themselves mostly.  The only things that keep it interesting around here are the random wheezes that pop up in random places.  I think Fred and George charmed them to do that.  Also, Mum told me to send you some food, just in case those damn Dursleys are starving you again.  Well I gotta run, one of their whiz-bangs just went off and Mum's screaming like a banshee.  Don't forget about what I said.  I'll be here if you need me._

_With love,_

_Ginny_

            For the first time that summer, Harry allowed himself to smile, a genuine smile, free of worry or doubt.  He wasn't sure what caused it, but there was something about his friends that just kept him strong.  He moved to open the box of food from the Weasleys, when there was suddenly a burst of flame on his bed, and Fawkes appeared with a loud, spine-tingling cry.  Harry noticed he was holding a letter in his beak, and made quick work of opening it.  He instantly recognized Professor Dumbledore's neat, loopy handwriting.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_            I feel that the events of the previous year should be taken into full account, and preparations be made.  You are the one destined to defeat Lord Voldemort, though I'm sure you would face him anyway, feeling responsible for all the destruction he has caused.  The time has come that you be made ready for the final battle, and only one man alive can prepare you the way you must.  It is with that thought in mind that I would like to request that, shortly after you receive this letter, pack all of your belongings and hold onto Fawkes' tail feathers.  He will take you to a secret location where you shall begin your training an old friend of mine, Master Toomin.  Oh, and let those kind relatives of yours know that you won't be coming back until next summer._

_            Most sincerely,_

_            Albus Dumbledore_

After coming to the end of the letter, Harry jumped up and packed all of his belongings.  His aunt and uncle had seemed much more lenient this summer with his belongings, and so Harry was allowed to keep them all in his room, so long as "nobody can see hide nor hair of that damn FREAK stuff."

Triple checking his trunk to make sure he had not forgotten anything, Harry finally slammed the lid down and locked it.  He scribbled a quick note to the Dursleys, letting them know that he was leaving and won't be back until next summer.  Harry Potter grabbed onto the beautiful golden plumage of Fawkes's tail and in a burst of flame, departed Privet Drive for places unknown.

***************************************************************************

Well there you go guys, chapter two.  I know it's moving along slowly right now, but things will pick up once Harry begins his training.  Unfortunately, I will be going away to a sleep away camp as of July 20th, and I will not be back until August 17th.  I can assure you though; I will probably have at least another two chapters ready to be uploaded when I get home.  They give us a lot of free time.  Don't forget, more reviews=longer chapters.  So please review!


	3. The School of Ki

**The Paths We Take**

_By Ged_

Disclaimer: I know most of you aren't going to read this anyway so I'll make it brief; I do not own Harry Potter or any of its astounding characters.  They and everything else in the HP universe are owned by J. K. Rowling.  Just about everything in existence is copyrighted these days so really nothing here is mine.

A/N: This is my first official fanfic.  I would really appreciate it if you would let me know what you think.  Constructive criticisms are welcome, but flamers had best turn back now.

***************************************************************************

Chapter 3: The School of Ki

            Harry closed his eyes to shield them from the brilliant glare of the fire produced by Fawkes.  He felt a slight tingling sensation in the back of his throat (most likely a result of the sudden feeling of weightlessness that came from holding the beautiful phoenix), but aside from that and the bright light, Harry was quite comfortable with traveling by Fawkes's "fire."  Harry definitely put it on the top of his "preferred means of travel" list, with portkey being on the bottom.  He still had not gotten over the phobia that came from the events of the third task.  After several moments, Harry found himself standing in front of a small, yet beautiful village.  It was made up mostly of huts, shacks, and cabins, but there was a large ring in the center, similar-looking to the fighting arenas from Dudley's old video games that Harry used to sneak in when nobody was home.  Looking out at it, he caught a glimpse of two people fighting in the arena.  However the battle wasn't like anything he had ever seen before.  The combatants were dealing blows back and forth so quickly that Harry could barely keep track.  Moments later, it became clear to him that they were only warming up.  Once their "warm-up" was over, the two sparring began to glow, and their movements became faster and faster, until Harry lost sight of them entirely.  They were moving faster than a normal human eye could follow, and Harry only managed to catch glimpses of their after-images.

            "Welcome, Harry, to the School of Ki." (A/N: It's pronounced "chee."  You'll learn all about it later if you don't already know what it is.  Sorry about that, back to the story.)  On instinct, Harry whipped out his wand and turned to face the source of the voice, which turned out to be none other than his mentor and one of the only people he ever felt safe with, Professor Albus Dumbledore, current headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  Harry lowered his wand and immediately turned red with embarrassment for thinking that Dumbledore could be a threat to him, even if it was just a reaction.  Dumbledore let out a small chuckle of amusement at Harry's predicament, which he quickly tried to cover up with a cough to keep from embarrassing the poor boy further.  He had been watching as Harry observed the match going on at the arena and had taken note of the boy's impressed state.

            Harry looked around in amazement at the village around him.  "This whole village is a school?" he asked in a disbelieving tone.

            "You will understand why soon enough young Mr. Potter," Dumbledore replied, his eyes dancing merrily.  It was rather obvious to Harry that his headmaster was very excited to be, er, wherever it was they were.  "Please, follow me," Dumbledore requested, and began walking off towards one of the smaller huts.  Harry immediately took off after him, not wanting to be left behind.  Upon entering the hut, Harry saw that it was a small, single room filled with candles.  He heard soft music being played, seemingly coming from nowhere in particular.  He took a moment to listen to the lyrics of the song, something about stars in the sky.  It meant very little to him, but seemed to have great sentimental value to the man standing in the center of the room, with his eyes closed and his hands in front of his neck, in what appeared to be a praying position, but with only the index and middle fingers of each hand pointed up.  He noticed that one hand seemed to be higher up than the other.  However after a moment of staring he noticed that the man was glowing slightly, a brilliant blue color.  As he watched, the glow became brighter and brighter and then suddenly, the man opened his eyes.  Looking into his eyes, Harry saw a bright flame burning behind the orbs of brilliant brown, and in that moment seemed to gaze into his soul.  He saw the raw power the man held within his body, and felt himself grow frightened and yet relaxed and comfortable at the same time.  The feeling was beyond description.  Suddenly, the small blue aura exploded around the man, turning bright yellow.  He began screaming, as though he was in pain.  The fire Harry saw in his eyes was replaced by a look of pure longing, of loneliness, of pure despair, and something else.  Harry could have almost said pure rage, but there was something strange about it.  The look of despair was one he recognized so well, having seen it in his own eyes every day he was allowed to look in the mirror back at the Dursleys since the third task in his fourth year.  The energy erupted even further, turning the man into a small sun.  Harry immediately brought his hands up to shield his eyes from the powerful glare.  Slowly, the man calmed himself down, taking slow and deep breaths, allowing his eyes to flutter closed once more.  The brilliant aura around him rapidly faded out and dissipated.  He opened his eyes once more and gazed around the room, eventually locking onto the forms of Harry and Dumbledore standing in the corner.  He tried to hide the disbelief in his face, but his eyes gave him away.  A wide smile lit up his face as he strode over to them and bowed by way of greeting.

            "Albus?  Is that you my old friend?" the man's voice croaked out, choked with emotion.

            "It has been a long time Toomin," Dumbledore replied, tears in his eyes, bowing back.

            "Far too long for my tastes.  How have you been these past few years?"

            "You mean these past 30 years, Toomin.  Much has changed since then."  Dumbledore's eyes were dancing merrily, and he allowed himself a grin, the likes of which Harry had never seen before on his headmaster.  "I am now Headmaster of Hogwarts."

            "You mean you didn't take the position offered to you for minister of magic?  You always were mad."  The look of disbelief was back on the man's face again.  Harry watched as the two discuss the old days, when, from what Harry could gather from their conversation, they were allies in battle against many dark wizards, including Grindelwald.

            "They should have given you more credit for that victory, Toomin.  You saved my life four times during the battle, and we would not have won without you."

            "Please, please, drop the 'Toomin' bit, and though it brings back many great memories, we are no longer allies in battle against a dark lord.  You can call me by my real name, not my battle name.  And as for the credit of victory, I did not want it.  I don't want the fame or glory or fortune that always comes with victory.  You know that.  I even specifically modified the memories of every single witness to make them believe it was all because of you that we won, and that I was unable to make it into battle."

            "So, tell me, Ged, why did you not modify my own memory?" Dumbledore inquired in a curious tone.

            "I didn't really want to at first, but I realized I had to do a thorough job of it or else not everyone's stores would match.  So I tried entering your mind to do some quick 'maintenance' and found out that it was impossible for me to gain access.  You were quite skilled at occlumency at the time I'm afraid, and I was rather drained from the battle."  For some reason Ged sounded ashamed of himself, as though defeating one of the greatest dark wizards of all time was not good enough for him, that he had to have full energy once the battle was done too.  Harry shook his head in disbelief.  Who was this man?  Almost as though he heard his thoughts (and at this point Harry was willing to bet he could) the man Dumbledore had called Ged walked over to Harry and bowed to him, as form of greeting.  "Greetings Mr. Potter.  I am Ged Barrie, lord, ki master, and sage of the Light."

            "H...How do you know my name?"  Harry's voice was shaking.  Needless to say, it's a tad bit unnerving to have a complete stranger know your name, even if you are the famous Harry Potter.  Also, there was something about this man that was quite intimidating besides the obvious display of power he put on only a few minutes ago, a feeling of authority that seemed to resonate from his very being.  He gave the impression of a man who you did not want to trifle with.

            "Nothing escapes my watchful gaze, or my probing mind," Ged replied, in a misty voice that almost reminded him of the divination teacher at Hogwarts, Professor Trelawney.

            "Yes, yes, there will be time for proper introductions later I'm afraid.  However I can only remain here for a short period, so we must discuss Harry's training," Dumbledore's voice held a surprising tone of urgency that Harry had never heard from his headmaster before.  It was clear that he was under a lot of stress now that everyone knew Lord Voldemort had truly returned.

            "And for what reason is Harry to come to me for training?  I'm sure that training under a mage would be far more rewarding for him, granted his situation, and you know I only take on the most dedicated of students and those with a genuine need for my guidance," Ged replied, making it quite clear he had no intention of taking on some random boy, even if he was the famous Harry Potter.  Anyone who wanted Ged to train them would have to be truly special, and not in the famous way Harry was.  He would have to earn the man's respect and guidance.

            "Please, sir.  I must train to face Voldemort in battle.  It's all my fault he's back and I am the one responsible for taking him out.  He came back to life with my blood and it's only right that I be the one to destroy him.  It is my fault he killed my friend and my fault that my godfather died as well.  Then I learned of a prophecy that stated either I would kill him or he would kill me.  I am responsible for him; I must be the one to destroy him," Harry spoke up, deciding to answer for himself this time.  He made sure to enunciate every word so that Ged understood the severity of his situation.  Ged stared in this boy in wonder.  He had read his memories when he first entered the room, and knew what he meant when he mentioned his blood and his friend and his godfather.  He knew what Harry had gone through, yet he could not understand how he could continue to blame himself when it was clearly beyond his control.  It was very unusual for a mere child to understand the severity of his situation, yet there was something special about his boy, a certain matureness that only came from having to grow up faster than one should.  Harry knew what he had to do and was willing to do it, despite the risks.  Ged was able to sympathize with him, knowing what it was like to be forced to accept a responsibility nobody your age should have to bear. 

            "You do understand that once you begin there is no going back.  No matter how hard your training may become, and I can assure you that it will get hard, you are to continue.  You are not to complain when you are tired, nor are you to stop once your muscles give out.  You will be pushed to your limits in every way you ever thought possible, and then some.  This is not an easy path to take.  Many have tried, and as of this day only seven have ever completed their first month, and of those seven only 4 are still with us.  This is not the path most choose to take.  Are you sure this is what you truly want?"  Ged wanted to make it quite clear to Harry that he should not simply try it, he must _do it.  A half-asked job could cost him his life.  He would have to be totally sure that this was what he had to do, that his cause was worthy enough._

            "I understand full well sir, and I do not care how hard it is or how much effort it takes.  I _must _do this.  I _must destroy Voldemort.  If any of my friends are harmed because of him, it will have been my fault for not seizing my opportunity and learning what I must to destroy him."  Harry's voice held a steady calm to it, a dangerous undertone that showed he was sincere about everything he said._

            "Very well then.  Your cause is just and your heart is pure.  From this point forward you will address me as 'Sensei.'  Your training begins tomorrow at sunup.  Do you understand?"

            "Yes, sensei," Harry replied.

            "Good.  Your sleeping quarters and home for the next two months is four huts down from my own.  Oh, and I suggest you get some sleep tonight.  You'll be needing it."

            "I have one more question Sensei."

            "Yes Harry?"

            "What is it that I'm training in anyway?"

***************************************************************************

A/N: Well, here you people go, chapter 3.  I actually finished this chapter before I left for camp on the 20th of July, but FF.net kept going down when I tried to upload.  So here it is.  For anyone who started reading this and thought "Wow this is really boring" or "This isn't very original," I promise it'll pick up from here.  Don't forget to review!


End file.
